"Emptiness"

"But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red sea: for his mercy endureth for ever." (Psalms 136:15)

  Just in case you know the facts, the facts are important to eliminate doubt and discouragement, we just need practice repeating what we know; the best way of doing that is by sharing what you know with others. Just saying; incase you were interested on why I brought it up. One of the positive things about taking those aside that are new believers and giving them some instructions about reading their Bible and finding a good church, is that of getting something inside that newly cleaned house! In other words, we can't just quit doing something and then do nothing; we must replace that which is gone with something else. This is what Paul is speaking about in Romans 6:15-23, the fact that we have been made free from sin, so now we must become slaves of God; that before we were under the power of sin, and we yielded our bodies to uncleanness unto iniquity; but now, being set free from sin, we yield our bodies to the things of righteousness unto holiness. What we see in the case of the children of Israel, is that, even though the enemy was defeated by God, powerfully taken out of the way, the children of Israel still longed for those things that they had been delivered from. Not just the things that they liked, because the longing for the things that they liked also brought with it the bondage and the misery; which didn't seem so bad, now that they were delivered from it. Amazing how that works, but it is just the flesh trying to have its cake and eat it too. This is why Paul says, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 6:23) Maybe the problem is, is that it is just too easy. I mean, if it wasn't a gift, but something you needed to labor for, maybe it what be something we did not so easily take for granted. (Just talking to myself here, so pay no attention!) That is why I believe Paul's next line of thinking turns from slavery to a wife being separated from her dead husband; because freedom allows us to make new choices, without fear of breaking the law! Anywho; it is easy to see where this is going, and why emptiness is something that we want to stay far away from! Don't allow it to happen; don't allow yourself to become idle, lazy, or complacent, because you will not do very well as a child of God. Which, by the way was the point to that closing portion of Scripture yesterday, that we are His children because He has made us His children; and as His children, He can do whatever it is that He needs to do, because He knows best what we need, even if what we need is going to hurt a little bit or for a little while. As a child of God, we are separated from the rest, which are those that are not His children. That is the partition we are involved in, that He has parted the Way for us to be more like Him; add to that, the fact that He has defeated our enemy, what more do we need, but to start filling our lives with the things of Him. Talk about things that we know or don't know....

"We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not. And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness. And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us understanding, that we may know him that is true; and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen." (1 John 5:18-21)